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Life is busy for everyone, whether you are a stay-at-home mom or the CEO of a corporation. So many of us eat on the go. We grab a burger and fries from the drive through, scarfing it down in the car or we stand at the kitchen counter bolting down our meal. Even something healthy like a smoothie can be gulped in the car on the way to work. Honestly you may be thinking – so what? What does this have to do with weight loss? As long as I’m not eating too many calories, what difference does it make?

More than you may have imagined. First of all, studies show that eating fast blocks the hormones that signal you are full and satisfied and lead to overeating. But there is another reason I want to focus on.

When you inhale your food, rather than treating it as a meal that you are aware of, and enjoy, savoring how it looks, smells and tastes, you will find that even though you may feel full physically, not long after you are searching the refrigerator for something else to eat! You see, your cells are starving and sending the message that they still need nourishment. They always say you eat with your eyes first – and there’s a lot of truth to that!

You can overeat and be obese yet in fact still be malnourished at the cellular level and many people are. This is part of the reason why. Choosing calorie-dense foods with little nutritional value is the other reason. But even if you eat healthy food in this mindless way, you won’t get the full nutritional value.

You really have two brains – one in your head and one in your digestive tract! You may think you can fool the one in your gut, but you can’t! If your brain doesn’t fully experience the taste, smell, texture, pleasure and satisfaction from your meals, it interprets that missed experience as hunger! Even if you just filled your belly!

So as often as possible, sit down at the table, pay attention to the food, enjoy it, savor it and eat it slowly and mindfully. Even if it is a smoothie – savor the creaminess, flavor and aroma. Beginning the meal with a prayer of thanks is a perfect way to slow down and be intentional about fully experiencing your meal. Not only will you improve your digestion, you will also find losing weight becomes easier – and much more enjoyable!

“I encourage you to pay attention to how you eat the majority of your meals: mindfully or mindlessly.”

– Ann Musico is a holistic health coach who helps women, at every age, to exemplify lives of vibrant health and wholeness – spirit, soul and body. Her mission is to show women how to adopt a healthy lifestyle in a way that is simple and achievable, empowering them to take responsibility for their own health in order to be a positive influence on their families. You can visit her website at threedimensionalvitality.com

From Your Health Journal…..”A great article today from FOX Business by Donna Fuscaldo called, Why Some Employers Are Paying Employees To Lose Weight. To lower expenses, some companies now offer incentives to lose weight – in the form of money. The obesity epidemic plaguing the country not only adds billions of dollars in costs to the nation’s health-care system, it also weighs on employees’ productivity. According to the article, obesity and health issues cost more than $153 billion a year in lost productivity due to absenteeism. So, businesses are trying to pay employees to be healthy. Many of you who read this may think this is crazy and ask, “why don’t people just lose weight because they want to be healthy.” Good question, but I am not prepared to answer this. Employees are using BMI (Body Mass Index) to measure weight loss. A BMI takes height and weight measurements to see if someone’s weight falls within a healthy range. The BMI Challenge pays $1,000 to people who invest $300 to participate and go from an obese BMI to a normal BMI in 12 months. Please visit the FOX site (link provided below) to read the complete article.”

From the article…..

Money talks, particularly when it comes to losing weight.

In an effort to cut their expenses, companies have launched wellness programs that pay workers to lose weight and hopefully lower their health risks and time and money spent on care.

“Weight loss is more fun and more successful if you offer individuals cash,” says David Roddenberry, CEO of wellness program HealthyWage.com.

The obesity epidemic plaguing the country not only adds billions of dollars in costs to the nation’s health-care system, it also weighs on employees’ productivity. According to HealthyWage, workers dealing with obesity and other chronic health issues cost more than $153 billion a year in lost productivity due to absenteeism.

Reduced productivity and the rising costs associated with health insurance, employers are increasingly looking for programs that will get workers fit and drive down health-care costs.

Some programs offered by HealthyWage have the employees putting in the money to lose weight. “People are motivated if they’re putting down their own money and losing their own money,” says Roddenberry. He adds that in addition to reducing health-care costs, companies are drawn to weight-loss wellness programs because they engage workers and cultivate team building across an organization.

HealthyWage offers employers many programs to choose from that track an individual’s progress or a team’s weight loss.

The BMI Challenge pays $1,000 to people who invest $300 to participate and go from an obese BMI to a normal BMI in 12 months. Participants have to follow a set of rules and check in weekly to track progress. Participants who don’t want to invest the $300 over the year can earn $100 for getting to a normal BMI. According to HealthyWage, about 25% of those that committed their money won the $1,000 at the end of the challenge.